“Venezi, the daughter of a far-right militant and known for tossing her blonde mane in a popular shampoo ad, is seen as part of the (current) government's declared aim of ending alleged left-wing cultural hegemony in Italy. … Critics say her conducting record is too slim for a post like La Fenice's.” - ANSA (Italy)
Chilean conductor Paolo Bortolameolli, who was associate conductor under Gustavo Dudamel at the Los Angeles Philharmonic through 2023, begins his term in Phoenix with the 2027-28 season. He will maintain his other current position, music director of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile’s national opera house, and the Filarmonica de Santiago. - Arizona Republic
With a fine equivalent to a few days’ revenue and some marginal changes to its business practices, Live Nation will, more or less, plow ahead as the dominant force in live music. - The Los Angeles Times
The show may not have been perfect, but it was a success: WNO has managed to get Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha onto a stage just two months after it left its longtime home. - The New York Times
“The Justice Department touted a tentative settlement of its antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Monday as a victory for consumers that would end an illegal monopoly over live events in America, but over two dozen states planned to keep fighting the companies in court.” - AP
“History is repeating itself 70 years later, just in a different way. The government is ‘systematically trying to erase our history with the demonization of trans and non-binary community,’ Newbury said. ‘It has given itself license to hate.’” - Oregon ArtsWatch
“‘For McAllen, mariachi is like the Friday Night Lights of high school,’ said Anthony Medrano, a prominent San Antonio mariachi musician. ‘There’s pride in it.’” - The New York Times
“The core problem has been ticket revenues, which were weakening even before the coronavirus pandemic shuttered its theater with a devastating financial impact. Box-office receipts last year were down $20 million from a decade earlier.” - The New York Times
“For all that the audience are loving it, the enthusiastic self-infantilisation feels depressing to me. Is Middle England so deprived of communal singing – the pub, the church, the local choir – it makes this appealing?” - The Guardian (UK)
“Nelsons, 47, has become one of the most unfortunate symbols of all that is irresponsible about the overstretched, overtired, overindulged modern music director. It has been not only deeply frustrating, but genuinely sad, to witness his trajectory.” - The New York Times
“The decision to not renew his contract was made by the BSO’s board of trustees because, beyond our shared desire to ensure our orchestra continues to perform at the highest levels, the BSO and Andris Nelsons were not aligned on future vision,” the BSO said in a statement from its trustees and CEO Chad Smith. - AP
“It’s no secret that this has been a really hard year,” she said. “So I started looking for a new opportunity several months ago.” - The New York Times
The most efficient maestro of his generation — blessed with a brain surgeon’s hands and a barn owl’s ears — he never commanded a premier ensemble. - The Critic
A study of the tree rings in Stradivarius violins, published in January in the journal Dendrochronologia, has revealed the most likely origin of some of the craftsman’s violins: wood from trees growing at high elevation in northern Italy in the same valley that hosted part of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. - The New York Times
